Saturday, 15 February 2014

Dementio13 - VTOL

Yes, one of the most prolific and consistently excellent electronic artistes of our time is back again, and he's not alone. VTOL, the latest masterpiece from Dementio13, aka Paul Foster, consists of a collection of collaborations with a bunch of other artists, many of whom he's worked with on and off before. And the result? Another triumph.

As I've said on more than one occasion, the most pleasing thing about Dementio13's work is its sumptuous variety: not for him an easily tagged album of trance or synth-pop or drum n bass; instead, you're likely to find all of these and much more thrown into a pot heaving with vitality and groaning with epicurean delight ('epicurean' in the original, philosophical, sense, that is) under a heady mix of disparate ingredients.

So, add into the mix a whole load of partners, all of whom make great music in their own right, and you get an even denser, even more desirable outcome. Pixieguts, who usually works with Paul as Cwtch, brings her enigmatic vocal stylings to 'Rodeo Days', while that fine modern troubador Ian Thistlethwaite adds a delightfully laconic touch to 'Self-Doubting Thomas'.

There are contributions also from Douglas Deep, Alone and Alun Vaughan, all of which add further delightful range to a collection that's as fun to listen to as it is absorbing; a reaction borne out even further by the galloping 'Alcohol', which brings Snippet to the party, a cheerfully rampant eulogy to booze that, placed between a couple of fine tunes featuring Dementio13 on his own, enforces the feeling still more than this is Paul Foster at his most playful: while a sense of enjoyment is hardly rare when listening to this remarkable artist, it's given a certain centrality when company join him at the production table.

Finally, it's only fair to give particular attention to the three collaborations here with Nita Disaster. Her vocals always lend something gorgeous and almost transcendent to his work and here perhaps more than ever before. 'Pollution' is my personal favourite of the year so far, by anyone, and it features in my February show on Dandelion Radio; the three tracks, plus another, will all appear in an exclusive session mix they've done for my show in March.

But there's no need to wait for that. Get VTOL as NYOP here and get yourself an invite to a great party where partners are optional, but inevitably bring something very important to the proceedings.